Gary Vee would tell you no. His clouds-dirt philosophy is far more involved than a one-and-done, hands-off approach to generating income. I’ve been toting the benefits of passive income as an additional stream of revenue. Some of my readers have questioned if you can really “set it and forget it” when it comes to creating passive income. Let’s explore this a bit further.
First of all, creating any kind of product takes some time. Even if you’re collecting and analyzing the information from your own anecdotal experiences, you need time to write out or record it. You need a time allowance for proofreading and editing. If you outsource some of the editing and design tasks, you add other people’s availability to the mix. Time is certainly involved, but by delving into expert material you already know, the first part of creating the product should be simple.
Once your product is complete, you have a launch to prepare for. As wonderful as search engines can be, you don’t want to hope and pray people find your product; you have to tell them you have a product available. This means press releases, social media blitzes, a book release party, a virtual book tour…the list could go on and on. Claiming the spotlight to showcase your new product is far from passive.
After your launch excitement ends, you can calm down a little and refocus your energies on your clients. However, you don’t ever want to fall into the ‘forget it’ phase. People need reminding. You don’t have to email them every day about your product, but don’t be afraid to mention it in your weekly newsletter or as a postscript in other email blasts.
Add a graphic to your website. Create an affiliate program for others to promote your product for a commission. Create a monthly plan for social media which includes occasional promotions of your product. Organic sales are wonderful, and they certainly happen, but you shouldn’t depend solely on search results to bring buyers to you.
Repetition Brings Repeat Buyers
Is there a way to create a series out of your product?
When you break down your subject by individual steps, your books will be shorter and easier for busy people to consume. It’s also helpful to include actionable steps targeted specifically for whatever topic you’re discussing. What a feeling of accomplishment it is to finish a book, check off the action steps therein, and ponder the next course of action. Readers will be excited to find the next book in your series and make an instant purchase. On the other hand, if you load people down with a 200-page book, you’ll find it more difficult to keep people’s attention. Even if there are action steps buried in your material there’s no reason for readers to buy more. This is especially true when they think EVERYTHING they could possibly need to know is contained in the one book.
Likewise, if your chosen passive income model is a membership site, you can have repetition within the site. For instance, schedule a webinar-type call once a week or once a month for a Q&A session. Once your audience participates in the first call, they’ll expect the next call and put it on their calendars. Run a monthly challenge for members. The challenge topic may change, but members will come to expect it and keep their subscription active in order to participate.
In short, passive income is not a “set it and forget it” business model. Most of the work is completed in advance of sales but promotion during the year is necessary to keep sales going. How much effort is needed to maintain your revenue goals is what determines if this is a passive means of income for you and your business.
What passive stream of income is your business generating?
Don’t have any passive revenue yet? Are you curious about how your business can generate additional sources of passive income?
Want recurring income without the stress of implementing another business freebee not designed for your business platform?
Take the clutter out of your business. Rid yourself of time killings distractions. Streamline your processes. Get overwhelm in check!
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